Well, 14 weeks pregnant and I still haven't spread the news to all interested parties.
Immediate family - check.
Close friends - check
Line manager - check.
The Others. Not so much.
When people say 'is it public knowledge yet?!' what they really mean is:
Have you posted it on Facebook. Ideally with a due date announcement and a scan picture?
Well no, I haven't. I'm not being disrespectful to excited FB baby news posts (I did one first time round, and watched happily as 'likes' and comments came in from people we barely know).
The truth is, I don't like the fact that pregnancy takes over as your defining characteristic.
'Have you heard from Sarah lately?'
'No, but see she's pregnant again!'
As if being pregnant is all I have been up to lately. Forget achievements at work, the ongoing house renovation and day to day LIFE. From this point forth my single purpose on this planet is to grow a foetus.
Don't get me wrong, it is of course all terribly exciting. But forgive me if I'm not content to put ALL OTHER CONVERSATION on hold for 9 months.
At work, a high proportion of colleagues I probably should have told don't know yet, purely because I quite like being asked for my input at planning/strategy/update meetings based on the job they pay me to do.
I'm all up for the 'congrats, when are you due?' chat, but experience informs me that people actually stop asking you about ANYTHING else.
Sure I am pregnant.
I am also a young woman. An employee. A Rape Crisis volunteer. A mother. A wife. A lover of antique furniture waging a war against cats shitting in my garden.
Be excited for me - I appreciate your kind words. Please just remember that my very existence is greater than the sum of my pregnant parts.
The Unmumsy Mum
I didn't announce my pregnancy on Facebook. I did however, announce the birth of my son. Cue many WTF comments from friends back home (the other side of the atlantic) who had no idea. But when do you announce after 12 week scan? 20 week scan? 24 weeks viability date? Oops by then it's closer to the finish so might as well wait until the end.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely. I became overwhelmed with 'everything baby' in pregnancy and craved conversations about the weather/TV/news etc. so fact everyone knew and would then only want to talk 'baby' to me actually made me feel really pushed out.
ReplyDeleteIf we get pregnant again I won't be announcing it on FB.